


Not Proper Gentlemen

by animenutcase



Series: The Misadventures of the Family Known As The Shepherds [7]
Category: Fire Emblem: Kakusei | Fire Emblem: Awakening
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2014-06-02
Updated: 2014-06-02
Packaged: 2018-02-03 02:11:02
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,169
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1727300
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/animenutcase/pseuds/animenutcase
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Maribelle looks at Owain and Inigo and wonders just how they could be her friends' sons.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Not Proper Gentlemen

Maribelle had been curious when Lissa wanted to introduce her son to her.

When he’d greeted her with “Hoy there, honored Mother of Brady!”, she knew that her work would be cut out for her. He was better at standing out than his father was. Perhaps too much better.

When she introduced herself to Olivia’s son, he’d complimented her parasol and invited her for tea. Better, but she knew when she was being flirted with. She would have thought he was Virion’s son if not for two things: The fact that Virion had already made his vows to Maribelle herself, and the brand of Ylisse's royal family staring her right in the face.

Despite being cousins, Owain and Inigo did not seem to get along very well. Maribelle once caught Inigo storming out the barracks. When she looked inside, she saw Owain grumbling to himself, and it wasn’t hard to make the connection.

Determined to get to the bottom of the issue, she invited both boys to join her for tea one day after training, without mentioning that the other would be there.

“I was under the impression that this tea party would be just for the two of us.” Inigo said with a disappointed look.  
“And I believed that I would be conspiring on a gift for the celebration of my father’s birth!”  
“And you are correct!” Maribelle explained. “We are indeed going to discuss a gift for Kellam’s birthday. It’s never a bad idea to plan things in advance.”  
“Why do I have to be involved, though?” Inigo raised his hand.

“Kellam _is_ your uncle, is he not?” Maribelle smiled. “I’m sure that he’d be delighted to hear that his nephew was thinking about him.”  
“And Lucina?” Inigo crossed his arms. “Is there a reason Kellam’s niece was not invited to this gathering?”  
“I’m afraid that Lucina is feeling a little under the weather, so she won’t be joining us. Now, if the two of you would _sit down_ , I’ll have tea poured for us.”

That was a tone that both Owain and Inigo recognized. They had heard it many times when they overheard Brady’s lessons as children. While Maribelle was far from the best fighter in the Shepherds, she had a way of commanding respect and they knew better than to argue.

They both took their seats without a word.

“Now, Owain, is there anything that your father might like for his birthday?” Maribelle asked when the tea was poured.  
“F- Father has expressed a longing for a new javelin.”  
“A new javelin!” Maribelle nodded in approval. “Do you have any ideas, Inigo?”  
“I’m… not really sure.” Inigo shifted uncomfortably in his seat. “I was never very close to Uncle Kellam in the future, so I don’t really know what he’d like.  
“Perhaps you could perform a dance at his party?” Maribelle suggested. “Your mother has told me that you seem interested in dancing.”  
“SHE DID WHAT!?” Inigo stood up, his face red as Owain snickered.

“Come now, dear.” Maribelle scolded him. “Your mother is a good friend of mine. It’s not that strange that we’d be discussing our children together. I also understand that you’ve been trying to keep your dancing hidden from even her?”

Inigo didn’t answer. Maribelle sighed and turned her gaze to Owain.

“It is impolite to laugh at another’s dreams, Owain.” 

Owain immediately fell silent.

“Goodness, you two are acting like I’m a Risen!” Maribelle sighed. “Did I scare the two of you in the future? Please be honest.”

Owain and Inigo looked at each for a moment before the former spoke.

“You’ve always been very…” Owain began.  
“…Strict.” Inigo finished. “Your lessons on etiquette were focused on Brady, but he wasn’t the only one who had you as a teacher. Far from it!”

“Every time you caught one of the children mouthing off, you dragged them away for a scolding. And you told our parents.” Owain added.  
“I learned to be on my best behavior when you were around _very_ quickly.” Inigo nodded.  
“I still remember that time Minerva stole some meat and you _stared her down_.”  
“Gerome’s mother was… unnerved.”

Seeing Maribelle’s concerned face, Owain quickly spoke up.

“I mean, don’t get us wrong!” He added. “None of the children hated you at all!”  
“You were very good at getting fussy children to calm down.” Inigo nodded.  
“And you stopped a lot of fights.”  
“Oh?” Maribelle raised an eyebrow in surprise.

“Yes.” Inigo nodded. “There were a lot of times when the atmosphere got to be too much, and fights would break out between people, both kids and adults. A lot of times, you got right in the middle of it and stopped it before it escalated.”  
“I see.” Maribelle gave a small smile.  
“Brady said that you wanted to be a magistrate before…” Owain began, only to fall silent.

Maribelle stared at the boys for a moment, considering her next words carefully. Finally, she asked.

“If I may ask… How did I…”

Owain and Inigo both winced slightly.

“Nah had wandered away from the castle, and Brady went to go look for her, then _you_ went to go look for both of them.” Inigo explained. “I don’t really know all the details, but when your husband found you near the entrance of the castle several hours later, you had several arrows in your back, and Brady kept trying to heal you with his staff. Nah was still really little, so I don’t think she understood what was going on, but she was crying.”  
“Brady’s the only one who really knows what happened exactly, and he doesn’t like to talk about it.” Owain crossed his arms, finding his feet very fascinating all of a sudden.

Maribelle gulped.

“That’s quite the story.” She said slowly. "At the very least, it sounds like I sustained fatal wounds while protecting my son and another child, but didn't die until I had made sure that they were safe."  
"That's the conclusion your husband came to as well." Inigo said. "He didn't blame Nah for what happened. I don't think Brady did, either."  
"Nah's parents died when she was really little and her foster family didn't really seem to care that much for her." Owain added. "She probably didn't know any better."  
"Her foster family was not watching her properly, you say." Maribelle narrowed her eyes. "Perhaps some of Ylisse's laws regarding the treatment of adopted children need some work."

Inigo and Owain both scooted back in their seats until Maribelle looked back at them with a smile.

"Perhaps we've spent enough time discussing sad things." She said calmly. "Perhaps we should get back to the reason I asked you both to join me for tea. Shall we get back to discussing Kellam's birthday present and getting the two of you to get along?"  
"I agree, Honored Mother of Brady!" Owain nodded his head and gave her a triumphant smile.

Inigo was more incredulous.

"Wait, is that the reason you called us both here!?"


End file.
